Music Spotlight

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Eyes Adrift with Landon

Bud Gaugh (drummer, Sublime), Krist Novoselic (bassist, Nirvana) and Curt Kirkwood (guitarist, Meat Puppets): They're either the members of new supergroup Eyes Adrift or participating in a Drug Addiction Destroyed My Band support group. Very much a work-in-progress, the band came together in the studio last December, but despite some preliminary recording are still without a label, distributor, or a plan for the future. Kirkwood has said in interviews that the band "is what it is" and soft-pedaled expectations.

Things got rolling when Novoselic suggested to Kirkwood that they get together after seeing him play in Seattle during his summer solo Meat Puppets tour. Novoselic brought Queens of the Stone Age drummer Alfredo Hernandez along to Kirkwood's Austin home to jam, but Hernandez's schedule didn't gel with recording plans. Enter Gaugh, fresh from a stint with Long Beach Allstars and looking for a new project.

Both Gaugh and Novoselic are avowed fans of the Meat Puppets, which Kirkwood founded back in '80 with his brother, Chris. Their spacious, country punk was a decade ahead of No Depression and inspirational to many young punks. Among them was Nirvana's Kurt Cobain, who invited the Kirkwoods to join him on MTV Unplugged, where he performed three of their songs.

So it's hardly surprising that Eyes Adrift, featuring Kirkwood's nasal vocals and twangy, six-string style, bears a resemblance to the Puppets' sun-baked, countrified rock. Novoselic also takes turns on lead vocals, including the savagely biting "Inquiring Minds," which targets the Ramseys (Jon-Benet's parents) and the media's hungry exsanguinations. See them Thursday, April 18, at the Cat's Cradle. --Chris Parker